News Above the Noise—April 23, 2023
1. What’s the Cost of Airing a Lie?
This week, Fox News settled with Dominion Voting Systems, and the $787.5 million was reported to be among the largest defamation settlements in history. “Money is accountability,” said Dominion lawyer Stephen Shackelford outside the courthouse, “and we got that today from Fox.” For more on this huge settlement, the events that led to it, and what it means, click here.
2. How Bud Light Became a Microcosm of America
Earlier this month, Bud Light sent social media influencer Dylan Mulvaney an influencer package that featured illustrations of Mulvaney’s face on the beer cans. These glorified swag bags are commonplace among big companies and influencers, with the social media stars showing off the swag on their channels. Yet when Mulvaney—who was celebrating the one-year mark of her coming out as transgender—made an Instagram video of the beer cans, it set off an anti-trans fall-out that many are pointing to as a perfect capture of the cultural, political, and social toxicity of America right now. You can read more on this story here.
3. Artificial Intelligence is Changing the Way Doctors Prescribe Drugs
When ChatGPT launched, it inspired many of us to wonder about the future of artificial intelligence (AI) and what it might mean for all of us. This week, we were struck by an excellent article outlining how scientists are using AI to find the best possible medication for patients, in an effort to make sure the prescribed drug works as well as possible and to avoid side effects. Scientists are doing this by combining the latest in stem cell technology (read: the growing of specific human cells) with AI software. Wondering when this might become widely available—and for which conditions? Click here to read more.
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4. Damar Hamlin Reveals the Cause of His Cardiac Arrest
When Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin collapsed on the field in January, millions of us watched and wondered what actually happened—and if he’d be OK. Thankfully, the football player recovered, and on Tuesday he revealed the cause of his cardiac arrest: commotio cordis, which Hamlin described as “a direct blow at a specific point in your heartbeat that cause cardiac arrest, and five to seven seconds later, you fall out.” One of the reasons Hamllin held a press conference to talk about this condition is because commotio cordis is the leading cause of death in youth athletes across all sports, and he said he’ll be “personally taking a step” to combat that statistic and raise awareness. For more on this story, click here.
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